Thursday, March 27

The Danger of Not Differentiating

A friend sent me this "generic brand video," knowing that I'd get a kick out of it. I got more than a kick, I got a lesson. In branding.

The lesson here is "differentiate or die." Die in a sea of sameness that is.

The crux of good marketing is finding a way to position your brand uniquely ... in a manner that your customers find compelling like no other option available to them.

This video creatively points out that what might seem differentiating has become in many cases what I call "table stakes." Cost of entry into a category. The given that every brand offers. The same as everyone else.

Sure, many of these attributes may be important but they don't necessarily differentiate the brand. So sure, the brand has to offer them, but they should not be the focal point of the marketing if every other brand is saying the same thing. Pick something else that's going to be unique to the customer, that you can uniquely deliver.

The other lesson buried in this video is prioritization; perhaps the hardest part of a marketer's job. A brand can't claim EVERYTHING. You have to pick the attributes/benefits that are the most important to your customer, the most unique to the marketplace, and the ones that you are best at delivering. And then drive those home.

Use this video as inspiration as I did. Inspiration to continually improve your marketing, finding unique ways to differentiate your brand to delight your customers.